Fake visa schools to be hit with charges

Bangkok Post
5 May 2018
WASSAYOS NGAMKHAM

Police will next week press charges against a number of international and language schools with falsifying visa documents on behalf of foreigners.

Previous police crackdowns found a number of foreign criminals in possession of education visas, which police believe were illegally obtained in order to allow suspects to remain in Thailand longer than on tourist visas.

The schools set to be charged allegedly colluded with Thai brokers and a group of immigration police officers to offer student visas to individuals who were known not to have any intention of studying during their stay in the country, Tourist Police Bureau deputy chief Surachate Hakparn told the Bangkok Post yesterday.

“We now know who the brokers and police officers are and are going to act against the schools,” he said.
The move followed the arrest of 64 foreign suspects in 125 locations, including international schools.
“Students” holding non-immigrant visas known as “ED” visas are allowed to live in the country on a yearly basis, he said.

The latest arrests, conducted under the “X-Ray Outlaw Foreigners” campaign, involve two suspects from Nigeria, one from Ghana and one from Sierra Leone who are facing charges including illegal entry into Thailand.
African tourists have been under close surveillance after investigators found members of some criminal gangs from Africa enrolled as students at language schools.

In an earlier operation, officers who nabbed the so-called “romance scammers”, who swindled single Thai women out of money, found they held student visas, according to Pol Maj Gen Surachate.

According to investigators, many only enrolled in those schools as a front and rarely, if ever, actually attended classes. However, police are now well aware of t his practice and have warned schools against advertising as “visa changing sites”, said Pol Maj Gen Surachate.

His agency is preparing to meet education officials to discuss ways to prevent foreigners from exploiting legal loopholes in order to remain in the country illegally.

Tourist police have carried out operation X-Ray Outlaw Foreigners for over a year and so far arrested 1,088 suspects.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/gen...t-with-charges

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3UrcE7l5DA

They did not round up any thai ladies “romance scammers”, who swindled single foreignmen out of money,none were found to be students they had all graduated in the art.

It must be difficult for Africans to stay in Thailand because they can only get (Thai) visas from their own Country

^^ indeed only a few Thai ladies have been prosecuted for romance scam...the ones I remember from the news were runaway brides (with the Downry) and scammed Thai people... that's probably why their stories make it up to the news.

I expect an overreaction, when foreign students will lose their visa for arriving late at school or skipping courses because of sickness

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Originally Posted by Farang Ky Ay

^^ indeed only a few Thai ladies have been prosecuted for romance scam...the ones I remember from the news were runaway brides (with the Downry) and scammed Thai people... that's probably why their stories make it up to the news.

I expect an overreaction, when foreign students will lose their visa for arriving late at school or skipping courses because of sickness

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Very inconvenient all round as the fake schools may have to exert themselves with real premises tutors. Perhaps makeover as acting academies, could be a hub , fake upholders of justcice meet fake students in fake learning environments. Meanwhile the big sharks feed unmolested.

On the upside some of the arrested will learn some Thai for free in the IDF, may be handy for the mailfraud once back in Nigeria.

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Originally Posted by david44

On the upside some of the arrested will learn some Thai for free in the IDF, may be handy for the mailfraud once back in Nigeria.

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They will most probably learn Hebrew in the IDF , not Thai

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Originally Posted by Fluke

They will most probably learn Hebrew in the IDF , not Thai

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good catch i meant IDC OF COURSE

Good news for Filipinos. TEFL with a funny accent. The poor students will suffer being taught by non-whites.

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Originally Posted by Wilsonandson

"The latest arrests, conducted under the “X-Ray Outlaw Foreigners” campaign, involve two suspects from Nigeria, one from Ghana and one from Sierra Leone who are facing charges including illegal entry into Thailand."

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Why would an illegal enrol with a school for an ed visa?

These articles about 'X-ray outlaw foreigner' keep saying 'International Schools'. I strongly suspect that this is a bad translation and they really mean Language Centers that employ foreigners. I would be very surprised if they found any illegals working at real International Schools.

Like most 'bisnit' terms in Thailand, the term 'International School' is used very broadly.